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Poll

Question: Would you go for a short hair style, to avoid having someone else rob you of your hair?

A tangled tale of hair robbers

By Irene CaselliBBC News, Venezuela

Venezuelan papers are
rife with reports that robbers are picking different kinds of locks
these days - locks of hair stolen from women to sell in the country's
lucrative beauty business. The president says its a rumour designed to
make young people paranoid. Even if it is, what does it say about the
things Venezuelans value most?

It's been happening in Maracaibo, the country's second
largest city. For a couple of weeks, newspapers have been dedicating
daily headlines to the crime. Victims have said they were approached by a
group of two or three. While one person held them down and threatened
them, the other would demand that they put their hair up in a ponytail -
and then cut it off with gardening shears.

Online publications have been giving tips on how to avoid
having one's hair stolen by covering it with a cap or scarf. One website
posted a four-minute video tutorial on how to put one's hair up in a
bun by using a sock.

I found myself watching it, although my own
haircut is so short that thieves wouldn't even approach me.

Hair theft is not a particularly original crime. In South
Africa, men have been robbed of their dreadlocks. Cases have also been
reported in Burma - and closer to home for me - next door in Colombia
and Brazil.

The usual explanation for such theft is that hair is simply
sold on to make wigs and extensions. But in Venezuela, many other
theories have sprung up to explain the phenomenon. It seems that for
commentators, stealing hair is a reflection of the country's many ills.
For example, an editorial in the newspaper El Nacional blamed its
"beauty culture" for the thefts.

Venezuela does take beauty seriously. It has racked up more
Miss Universes and Miss Worlds than anywhere else, and other women feel
the pressure on a daily basis. Breast implants are a common present for
15-year-olds. Make-up is a must at all times - even in the gym.

Manes of trailing hair extensions are part of this, although I never
understood the hype. I used to have long hair myself. When I got tired
of it, I cut it off. If I want it long again, I guess I'll just wait
until it grows.

But Daniel, my hairdresser, tells me Venezuelan women are
impatient with their hair and don't take enough care of it. They dye it,
they straighten it, they do whatever it takes for it to look good all
the time. That's why extensions are so popular, he says. They are quick
and yet they look real.

With these considerations in mind, the
newspaper's editorial may even make sense. If women here are willing to
go as far as having aesthetic or plastic surgery - which can be
dangerous and sometimes even leads to death - then it makes sense that
violence infiltrates the realm of beauty. But does the newspaper maybe
suggest that women themselves are the ones to blame?

Las Piranas - as the hair thieves are known - are mostly
female. But violence is a much deeper issue in this country. According
to the UN, Venezuela now has the fifth highest murder rate in the world.
Kidnappings are so common that many well-to-do families share a fund
with friends, so they always have easy-to-access cash if one of their
loved ones is snatched. With such high levels of crime and impunity, it
is understandable that thieves try to take advantage of what has become a
lucrative market.

Hair extensions don't come cheap. A full head can cost as
much as 10,000 bolivares - nearly $1,500 at the official exchange rate.
This means a thief can earn up to $500 for a good chunk of hair.

The hair theft phenomenon isn't as simple as it seems. So
far, no formal complaints have been filed. The news stories are based on
testimonies of a few victims in local media. But here in Venezuela,
paranoia is rampant. In Caracas, the capital, there have been no reports
of the crime. But people are already worrying. The other night, a woman
told me that she wasn't sure whether it was worse for thieves to go for
her hair or for her wallet.

And some women are even choosing to cut their hair before
someone else snatches it. Daniel, my hairdresser, says my short, basic
cut may even become fashionable soon.

Anyway, I suppose if anything that was able to be altered made me a target for crime, I would likely change it. My hairstyle isn't that important to me, though. I have no religious or cultural influence.

huh, so strange, and yet im not surprised. i wear my hair how i want to, and i dont have any attachment to it, so if it is long and someone wanted it i wouldnt really care if they cut it off, as long as they didnt take my head with it! lol right now its not long enough for someone to want, so i doubt that i would be a target.

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